Why I Started This…
Why I Started This Brand
Back in 2016, restlessness rumbles could be felt in my professional life. I had traveled the world, loved living abroad, and done everything desired in my career. Reaching for the next rung on the ladder seemed mundane. Life became a little too predictable, and the realization of a loss of passion for continuing the career climb. To put it plainly, I wasn't happy, and there was only one person who could change that. It was time to make a change to my career that began as active duty in the US Army, culminating at the Department of Defense as a federal employee. After leaving, I join the civilian industry and tried consulting. Ultimately finding myself sparkless to continue the consulting path.
The opportunity was monetarily generous, and by all accounts, I should have been ecstatic about the income. As a kid from a modest blue-collar family in a tiny town in Maine, there was gratitude for how I'd landed, yet it still felt unfulfilling. Worse yet, guilt was present for not just being "okay" with where my career had taken me. I went through a several-year internal tug-o-war, which resulted in many conversations with close girlfriends and women colleagues that were feeling the same way. We nearly had it all, and it felt lifeless, and the latest spiritual retreat or self-help book we read was telling us to keep practicing being grateful, yet we all wanted to stop feeling like the whole world was asking us to feel something other than what we felt. The world not only told us we could have anything, but that we had a duty to pursue it for all the women who had sacrificed before us. So, we felt guilty for not taking it all on or not feeling happy that we had achieved it. The more I looked around, the more it was realized it's an existential crisis that seems to be plaguing most women in my generation. The women I spoke to said they felt depressed, anxious, tired, lost purpose, and lacked the desire to chase something else that no longer fulfilled them. They stopped caring what people thought and started turning inward to discover more of what truly would make them happy.
In 2018 I started listening closer, taking notes from the conversations with friends and colleagues and also questioning where they had arrived in their life. It wasn't that they weren't successful enough or making enough money; it was realizing their far-reaching goals and still not having satisfaction. The pattern was recognized that I'm not the only one with these feelings and who wants to make a change.
In 2019 Her Next Best Move brand was born. The books, training, podcast, website, and coaching services documents the path to the evolution of transitioning my career to working from anywhere as a full-time blogger, podcaster, and author. I started this podcast and blog because many women ask themselves, what else is possible for me? How can I discover a new path that fits more into the lifestyle desired? So tell me, what are the moves? There are loads of aspirational and feel-good stuff out there but not a lot of practical tactics for taking on significant transitions. What I've found with Gen X women is that they are self-sufficient action-takers and resourceful. They tend to be loners but lean on their network of girlfriends to support them as they work through challenges.
It takes incredible tenacity to go after a dream. I hope our community can continue to be a source of support for women that are looking to figure out how to make their next moves and a new meaningful purpose and learn what the next steps might be. My arms are open to all generations, and I believe there is wisdom to be shared by all of us. Please come to join our conversations in the private Facebook Group: Her Next Best Move! Also, listen to our weekly episodes about making moves on Her Next Best Move Podcast. Look for our free downloads and join the mailing list to hear about events in your area supporting making your next best moves!
In Grace and Gratitude,
Darcy